Pedestrians risk walking on city footpaths

Bhopal: Pedestrians in 'smart' Bhopal are left to risk their lives every day as the footpaths in the city have turned bad to worse in absence of maintenance and repairs besides encroachments. Gone are the days when one could just walk down safely without having to bother about speeding vehicles.
Old-timers in state capital recall, there was no fear of vehicles in the past but today even footpaths are not safe as two-wheeler riders zip through the footpaths.Cut to the present day and take any road in the city. Watch out for the harsh reality of broken footpaths, or roads with no footpaths at all. Worse all footpaths have been encroached by hawkers and shopkeepers displaying their wares extending up to the roads, or motorcyclists taking a detour on footpaths to skip the traffic queues?
Barring a few places, the situation is the same across the city. Pedestrians have their safety compromised. This is true from 1100 quarters to E-5 road, E1 to Trilanga, even in the more MP Nagar, E7 and Bittan market Road areas. There is no distinction between residential and commercial areas.
In recent years, several suburban/rural areas have seen development into urban areas. In order to increase traffic capacity, the shoulders of roads are converted to paved sections. This only exposed pedestrians more dangerously to speeding vehicles.
Kruti Jain, a resident of Idgah hills says, "I never risk my life attempting to walk on the so-called footpaths. It is too dangerous as often two-wheeler riders are conveniently riding on footpaths. Even if I have to go for a short distance, I prefer taking an auto rickshaw."
Despite allocation, most footpath stretches lack continuity. Portions are in bad shape because of utility repair and maintenance works for storm water drains, sewer lines and water supply lines. Authorities need to provide separate utility sections along the footpaths to improve the efficiency and use of these sidewalks, she added.
Devyani Saxena, a resident of Indarpuri says, the past many years that I have been observing, not even once have the authorities tried to repair the broken footpaths. Nor have they laid new ones, thus forcing people to walk on the main road itself, which is too dangerous.
Several office cabs, buses and heavy traffic zip down the road, instilling fear in many pedestrians."